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8.5 Upper Columbia River Population

The current distribution of the Columbia River population resides in the upper Columbia River from Revelstoke (REV) Dam to Grand Coulee Dam (Washington), as well as in the lower Kootenay River from its confluence with the Columbia River to Brilliant Dam (Figure 3). Studies conducted on Columbia River white sturgeon are divided among the following population components: i) Transboundary Reach, 56 km of riverine habitat located between HLK Dam and the Canada-U.S. border, including the small section of river in the lower Kootenay River below Brilliant Dam; ii) Arrow Lakes Reservoir (ALR), 230 km of riverine and lacustrine habitat located from REV to HLK Dams; and, iii) Roosevelt Reach (FDR), from the U.S. border downstream. The transboundary nature of this population requires that recovery efforts be coordinated across multiple jurisdictions. Since SARA is Canadian legislation, only critical habitat identification in Canada is addressed.

Remnant population components may also exist upstream of the ALR component (i.e. between REV and Mica Dams and in the Kinbasket Reservoir) but investigations have not captured white sturgeon at this time. Given the large size of these reservoirs, the failure to catch a white sturgeon does not necessarily preclude their existence, but would suggest that population densities are very low (RL&L Environmental Services Ltd. 2000b).

The following sections discuss the ALR component (Table 12) and the transboundary component (Table 13) separately.

Table 12. Summary of information base for white sturgeon critical habitats in the ALR area of the Columbia River. An empty cell means that the life stage does not consistently use the habitat. The table has two main columns from left to right: Location (see Figure 28 for basin overview) and Confirmed (Checkmark), Suspected (S), or Possible (question mark) Use by Life Stage and Degree of Use (H=High, M=Moderate, L=Low). The latter column has seven sub-columns from left to right: Spawn, Yolk sac larvae/feeding larvae, Early juvenile, Late Juvenile and Adult, Overwintering, Staging, and Overall assessment. Directly below column headings are five rows, read from left to right.

Table 12. Summary of information base for white sturgeon critical habitats in the ALR area of the Columbia River. A blank cell means that the life stage does not consistently use the habitat.

Location (see Figure 28 for basin overview)

Spawn

Yolk Sac larvae and Feeding Larvae

Early Juvenile

Late Juvenile and Adult

Over wintering

Staging

Overall Assessment

Columbia River adjacent to Revelstoke Golf Course

√ (M)

S (L)

√ (L)

Critical

Big Eddy

?

√ (L)

√ (M)

Critical

Salmon Rocks

?

√ (L)

√ (M)

Critical

Beaton Reach

√ (M)

√ (H)

√ (H)

Critical

Narrow Burton Reach

S (L)

√ (M)

Critical

Confirmed (√), Suspected (S), or Possible (?) Use by Life Stage and Degree of Use (H=High, M=Moderate, L=Low)

Table 13. Summary of information base for white sturgeon critical habitats in the transboundary area of the Columbia River. An empty cell means that the life stage does not consistently use the habitat. The table has two main columns from left to right: Location (see Figure 28 for basin overview) and Confirmed (checkmark), Suspected (S), or Possible (question mark) Use by Life Stage and Degree of Use (H=High, M=Moderate, L=Low). The latter column has seven sub-columns from left to right: Spawn, Yolk sac larvae/feeding larvae, Early juvenile, Late Juvenile and Adult, Overwintering, Staging, and Overall Assessment. Directly below column headings are seven rows, read from left to right.

Table 13. Summary of information base for white sturgeon critical habitats in the transboundary area of the Columbia River. A blank cell means that the life stage does not consistently use the habitat.

Location (see Figure 28 for basin overview)

Spawn

Yolk Sac larvae and Feeding Larvae

Early Juvenile

Late Juvenile and Adult

Over wintering

Staging

Overall Assessment

Robson Reach

√ (H)

?(H)

√ (H)

√ (H)

√ (H)

√ (M)

Critical

Kootenay Eddy

√ (M)

√ (H)

√ (M)

√ (L-M)

Critical

Fort Shepherd Eddy

√ (H)

√ (H)

√ (H)

√ (H)

Critical

Waneta Eddy

√ (H)

√ (H)

√ (H)

√ (H)

Critical

Pend d’Oreille – Columbia Confluence

√ (H)

√ (H)

√ (L)

√ (M)

√ (H)

Critical

Bridge Hole

S (L)

√ (M)

√ (M)

Critical

Brilliant Tailrace

S (L)

√ (M)

√ (M)

Critical

Confirmed (√),Suspected (S), or Possible (?) Use by Life Stage and Degree of Use (H=High, M=Moderate, L=Low)

8.5.1 Biophysical Functions, Features and Attributes of Critical Habitat – Upper Columbia River Population

Tables 14 and 15 summarize the critical habitat function(s), features and attributes, to the extent possible, for the Upper Columbia River population of white sturgeon.

Table 14. This table provides a summary of the biophysical features, functions, attributes and locations of critical habitat for Upper Columbia River white sturgeon in Arrow Lakes Reservoir. The first column describes the geographic locations of the critical habitat, which encompass areas within the Upper Columbia River system where white sturgeon reside. The second column indicates the life stage that uses each respective critical habitat area. The third column indicates the function that the particular life stage undertakes in each area. The fourth column describes the critical habitat feature that provides the function, and the fifth column details the attributes that the critical habitat feature must have in order to provide the biological function needed to support Upper Columbia River white sturgeon survival or recovery. The final column contains notes.

Rearing currently occurs at a temperature range of 10-12ºC, but the ideal is 12-18ºC

Wetted conditions required; yolk sac larvae are unable to leave the area at this stage

Yolk sac larvae have been captured in the area.

Feeding larvae have not been collected at this location, likely downstream.

This is the only confirmed spawning area for white sturgeon in the mid- Columbia River between REV Dam and HLK Dam. Spawning has been detected in ~50% of years at this location since 1999 with at least 2 spawning events estimated in those years when spawning has been documented.

Based on the locations of captured eggs, low flows during years with low summer ALR levels could harm incubating eggs at night on bars downstream of the spawning area. Monitoring is ongoing and observations of egg dewatering have occurred once in 10 years. This was prior to implementation of the REV minimum flow which has increased wetted area by 37% and may reduce risk to eggs in this area. In years with high ALR summer levels, incubating eggs would be within backwater effect of the reservoir and may be more vulnerable to predation.

Rearing areas are used beginning in mid-August.

Staging areas are used from June to August.

Spawning and incubation areas are used from Mid-July – early September.

Adult

Staging

Hydraulic conditions particular to this location, see attributes

Velocities greater than 0.8m/ sec-1

Spawning and Incubation

Hydraulic conditions particular to this location, see attributes

Spawning and incubation occurs at a temperature range of 10-12ºC, but the ideal is 12-18ºC

Summer temperatures as high as 13ºC in the main area of use for juveniles.

Telemetry data suggests use of river thalweg habitat with no indication of shallow water habitat use, monitoring is ongoing.

Winter flows and water temperatures have increased since regulation of the river. It is not known whether this has increased or decreased the suitability of overwintering habitats.

Feeding areas are used all year.

Overwintering areas are used from Nov - Mar

Overwintering

Depositional Area1

Depths greater than 10m

Velocity greater than 0.5m/sec-1

Narrow Burton Reach

Early and Late Juvenile

Potential Rearing (suitable for rearing and necessary for recovery)

Feature(s) not confirmed

Attribute(s) not confirmed

A juvenile has been detected in this area, but the extent of habitat use is unclear. Juvenile use is only suspected within this area.

Rearing areas are used all year.

Feeding areas are used all year.

Adult

Feeding

Food availability often associated with:

Depositional Area1

Confluence with tributary that provides spawning habitat for salmonids in spring and fall

Lower velocity holding areas

Source of fish and invertebrates, preferably salmonids

1 Depositional area– typically lower velocity areas where fish can rest and prey species may congregate; often in close proximity to confluences with other water bodies providing further access to food sources

Table 15. This table provides a summary of the biophysical features, functions, attributes and locations of critical habitat for Upper Columbia River white sturgeon in the Columbia Transboundary Reach. The first column describes the geographic locations of the critical habitat, which encompass areas within the Upper Columbia River system where white sturgeon reside. The second column indicates the life stage that uses each respective critical habitat area. The third column indicates the function that the particular life stage undertakes in each area. The fourth column describes the critical habitat feature that provides the function, and the fifth column details the attributes that the critical habitat feature must have in order to provide the biological function needed to support Upper Columbia River white sturgeon survival or recovery. The final column contains notes.

Table 15. Summary of the biophysical functions, features, attributes and locations of critical habitat for Upper Columbia River white sturgeon in the Columbia Transboundary Reach.

Geographic Location

Life Stage

Function

Feature(s)

Attribute(s)

Notes

Pend d’Oreille – Columbia Confluence to US Border

Waneta Eddy

Yolk Sac Larvae

Rearing

Hiding locations in the vicinity of spawning habitat

Gravel to cobble substrate with interstitial spaces

Optimal temperatures for this phase are between 14-18ºC

Wetted conditions required; yolk sac larvae are unable to leave the area at this stage

This is an important confirmed spawning area for white sturgeon in the Columbia River between HLK Dam and the US border. Spawning has been detected at this location since monitoring began in 1993 with an estimated minimum of 3 to 12 spawning events per year. Spawning has occurred over a wide variety of flow conditions (no correlation with flow).

Majority of feeding larvae habitat downstream in the US.

Hydraulic conditions in the Waneta Eddy / Pend d’Oreille confluence area show complex responses to flow and can vary dramatically depending on the combined effects of flow in the Columbia and Pend d’Oreille Rivers.

Hydraulic modelling indicates that the majority of egg incubation area is located upstream of the border and within the influence of both the Pend d'Oreille and Columbia rivers.

Suitable flow conditions for egg survival to hatching are present in most years throughout the majority of the spawning period.

Rearing areas are used from mid-June to mid-August.

Feeding areas are used all year.

Staging areas are used November to July.

Spawning and incubation areas are used from June to early August.

Feeding Larvae

Rearing Feeding

Fluvial habitat downstream of spawning sites

And food availability often associated with the above.

Water temperatures are optimal for feeding larvae between 14-18ºC

Source of benthic invertebrates and/or benthic dwelling fish

Early Juvenile

Rearing Feeding

Hydraulic conditions particular to this location utilized, see attributes

Eggs and larvae have been detected downstream of the Kinnard Bridge Eddy (rkm 11-20), but the exact location is unknown. Future identification of the spawning area may lead to inclusion of egg and larval stages for this location.

Rearing areas are used from mid-June to mid-August.

Feeding areas are used all year.

Staging areas are used November to July.

Overwintering areas are used from November to March.

Late Juvenile and Adult

Feeding

Food availability often associated with:

Depositional Area1

Lower velocity areas relative to thalweg

Food source such as rainbow trout, kokanee, mountain whitefish and their eggs.

Shallow water habitats adjacent to confluence with tributary that provides spawning habitat for salmonids

Overwintering

Deep pools

Depths greater than 20m,

Lower velocity areas, 0.5 m/ sec-1

Adult

Staging

Hydraulic conditions particular to this location, see attributes

Lower velocity holding areas

Pools greater than 20m depth

Robson Reach

Yolk Sac Larvae

Rearing

Hiding locations in the vicinity of spawning habitat

Gravel to cobble substrate with interstitial spaces, ideal

Optimal temperatures for this phase are between 14-18ºC

Wetted conditions required; yolk sac larvae are unable to leave the area at this stage

Current substrates are not optimal

Spawning has recently been detected in the vicinity of ALGS. Monitoring is ongoing to further describe spawning frequency and duration at this location and to characterize substrates.

Entrained mysids are an important food source in Robson Reach, though a non-native species.

Food source such as rainbow trout, kokanee, mountain whitefish and their eggs

Shallow water habitats adjacent to confluence with tributary that provides spawning habitat for salmonids

Overwintering

Deep pools

Generally depths greater than 20m, however shallower depths may be used

Adult

Staging

Hydraulic conditions particular to this location, see attributes

Deep, low velocity habitat

Spawning and Incubation

Hydraulic conditions particular to this location see attributes

Flow conditions – spawning occurs during the high summer release period

Optimal temperature range for incubation is 14-18ºC

Excavated rock channel with varying sized substrate

Mean water column velocities at most spawning sites are typically greater than 0.8m/sec-1

Bridge Hole

Brilliant Tailrace

Late Juvenile and Adult

Feeding

Hydraulic conditions particular to this location that provide food, see attributes

Lower velocity areas relative to thalweg

Source of food, such as entrained fish through the dam and resident fish populations (ex. kokanee and whitefish)

Disproportionate use by fish that preferentially reside within the lower Kootenay River.

There is minimal use of the plunge pool / tailrace area during periods of spill.

Feeding areas are used all year.

Low overwintering use from November to March.

Overwintering

1 Depositional area– typically lower velocity areas where fish can rest and prey species may congregate; often in close proximity to confluences with other water bodies providing further access to food sources

The following locations of the critical habitat’s functions, features and attributes have been identified using the critical habitat parcel approach. Critical habitat downstream of existing hydroelectric facilities does not include the physical structure of the dam, although it may include anthropogenic features such as rip rap downstream of the facilities.

Figure 28. This is a map of the Upper Columbia River showing an overview of critical habitat locations. Critical habitat includes aquatic habitat features and attributes that Upper Columbia River white sturgeon use to carry out life functions. Nine locations in the vicinity of Revelstoke, Castlegar and Trail are labelled on a map of British Columbia as follows: Columbia River adjacent to Revelstoke Golf Course, Salmon Rocks/Big Eddy, Beaton Reach, Narrow Burton Reach, Robson Reach, Bridge Hole, Brilliant Tailrace, Kootenay Eddy, Ft. Shepherd Eddy, Waneta Eddy/Pend d’Oreille River Confluence. A scale and legend are provided along with an inset map showing locations are primarily in the south-eastern corner of British Columbia. The map is oriented in a “north is up” direction.

Figure 29. Figure 29 is a map of a section of Arrow Lakes Reservoir, British Columbia, showing the critical habitat locations of Big Eddy, Salmon Rocks, and the Columbia River adjacent to Revelstoke Golf Course. The map depicts three polygons that have been identified as critical habitat for Upper Columbia River white sturgeon. In the identified polygons, critical habitat includes aquatic habitat features and attributes that Upper Columbia River white sturgeon use to carry out life functions. The coordinates denoting various points of the polygons’ boundaries are listed in Table 16. The critical habitat polygons in the Big Eddy, Salmon Rocks, and the Columbia River adjacent to Revelstoke Golf Course map are also labeled with codes that correspond to codes used to identify the polygons in Table 16. A scale of 1:29,000 and legend are provided along with an inset map showing locations are primarily in the Kootenay region of British Columbia. The map is oriented in a “north is up” direction.

Figure 30. Figure 30 is a map of a section of Arrow Lakes Reservoir, British Columbia, showing the critical habitat location Beaton Reach. The map depicts a polygon that has been identified as critical habitat for Upper Columbia River white sturgeon. In the identified polygon, critical habitat includes aquatic habitat features and attributes that Upper Columbia River white sturgeon use to carry out life functions. The coordinates denoting various points of the polygon’s boundary are listed in Table 16. The critical habitat polygon in the Beaton Reach map is also labeled with codes that correspond to codes used to identify the polygon in Table 16. A scale of 1:73,000 and legend are provided along with an inset map showing locations are primarily in the Kootenay region of British Columbia. The map is oriented in a “north is up” direction.

Figure 31. Figure 31 is a map of a section of Arrow Lakes Reservoir, British Columbia, showing the critical habitat location Narrow Burton Reach. The map depicts a polygon that has been identified as critical habitat for Upper Columbia River white sturgeon. In the identified polygon, critical habitat includes aquatic habitat features and attributes that Upper Columbia River white sturgeon use to carry out life functions. The coordinates denoting various points of the polygon’s boundary are listed in Table 16. The critical habitat polygon in the Narrow Burton Reach map is also labeled with codes that correspond to codes used to identify the polygon in Table 16. A scale of 1:73,000 and legend are provided along with an inset map showing locations are primarily in the Kootenay region of British Columbia. The map is oriented in a “north is up” direction.

Figure 32. Figure 32 is a map of a section of the Columbia River, British Columbia, showing the critical habitat location Robson Reach. The map depicts a polygon that has been identified as critical habitat for Upper Columbia River white sturgeon. In the identified polygon, critical habitat includes aquatic habitat features and attributes that Upper Columbia River white sturgeon use to carry out life functions. The coordinates denoting various points of the polygon’s boundary are listed in Table 16. The critical habitat polygon in the Robson Reach map is also labeled with codes that correspond to codes used to identify the polygon in Table 16. A scale of 1:55,000 and legend are provided along with an inset map showing locations are primarily in the Kootenay region of British Columbia. The map is oriented in a “north is up” direction.

Figure 33. Figure 33 is a map of a section of the Lower Kootenay River, British Columbia, showing the critical habitat locations of Kootenay Eddy, Bridge Hole and Brilliant Tailrace. The map depicts three polygons that have been identified as critical habitat for Upper Columbia River white sturgeon. In the identified polygons, critical habitat includes aquatic habitat features and attributes that Upper Columbia River white sturgeon use to carry out life functions. The coordinates denoting various points of the polygons’ boundaries are listed in Table 16. The critical habitat polygons in the Kootenay Eddy, Bridge Hole and Brilliant Tailrace map are also labeled with codes that correspond to codes used to identify the polygons in Table 16. A scale of 1:16,000 and legend are provided along with an inset map showing locations are primarily in the Kootenay region of British Columbia. The map is oriented in a “north is up” direction.

Figure 34. Figure 34 is a map of a section of the Columbia River, British Columbia, showing the critical habitat location Fort Shepherd Eddy. The map depicts a polygon that has been identified as critical habitat for Upper Columbia River white sturgeon. In the identified polygon, critical habitat includes aquatic habitat features and attributes that Upper Columbia River white sturgeon use to carry out life functions. The coordinates denoting various points of the polygon’s boundary are listed in Table 16. The critical habitat polygon in the Fort Shepherd Eddy map is also labeled with codes that correspond to codes used to identify the polygon in Table 16. A scale of 1:7,000 and legend are provided along with an inset map showing locations are primarily in the Kootenay region of British Columbia. The map is oriented in a “north is up” direction.

Figure 35. Figure 35 is a map of a section of the Columbia River, British Columbia, showing the critical habitat locations Waneta Eddy and the Pend d’Oreille confluence with the Columbia River. The map depicts two polygons that have been identified as critical habitat for Upper Columbia River white sturgeon. In the identified polygons, critical habitat includes aquatic habitat features and attributes that Upper Columbia River white sturgeon use to carry out life functions. The coordinates denoting various points of the polygons’ boundaries are listed in Table 16. The critical habitat polygons in the Waneta Eddy and Pend d’Oreille confluence with the Columbia River map are also labeled with codes that correspond to codes used to identify the polygons in Table 16. A scale of 1:9,000 and legend are provided along with an inset map showing locations are primarily in the Kootenay region of British Columbia. The map is oriented in a “north is up” direction.

Table 16. Geospatial Coordinates of Critical Habitat Areas for Upper Columbia River white sturgeon. A footnote on the word “coordinates” in the previous sentence states the following: Coordinate points were digitized using various orthophotos provided by Fisheries and Oceans Canada. The resolution of the various orthophotos varied significantly - ranging from 0.2 m cell size to 24 m cell size. This should be taken into consideration when evaluating the accuracy of the coordinates associated with these points. For geographic coordinate points situated at the wetted boundary, this boundary is meant to represent the annual high water mark (Hatfield et al., 2012). Note: For the Canadian portion of the Columbia River, river kilometres start at Hugh L. Keenleyside Dam (HLK) Dam in Castlegar and increase moving downstream to the Canada/U.S. border (HLK = 0 km, Canada/U.S. border ~ 57.0 km). River kilometres also increase on the upstream side of HLK Dam, starting at 0 km at the dam and increasing to the headwaters of the Columbia River.

The table has eight columns read left to right: Critical Habitat Name, Coordinate Marker, Waterbody, River Kilometer, Latitude (DD), Longitude (DD), Latitude (DMS), Longitude (DMS). DD refers to Decimal Degrees and DMS refers to Degrees, Minutes, Seconds. Directly below the column headings there are 63 rows. Nine rows correspond to the Columbia – Bridge Hole area, four to the Columbia – Brilliant Tailrace area, four to the Fort Shepherd Eddy area, five to the Columbia – Pend d’Oreille Confluence area, four to the Columbia – Robson Reach area, four to the Columbia – Waneta Eddy area, six to the Columbia (ALR) – Beaton Reach area, three to the Columbia (ALR) – Big Eddy area, four to the Columbia (ALR) – Columbia River adjacent to Revelstoke Golf Course area, four to the Columbia (ALR) – Narrow Burton Reach, and four to the Columbia (ALR) – Salmon Rocks area.

13 Coordinate points were digitized using various orthophotos provided by Fisheries and Oceans Canada. The resolution of the various orthophotos varied significantly - ranging from 0.2 m cell size to 24 m cell size. This should be taken into consideration when evaluating the accuracy of the coordinates associated with these points. For geographic coordinate points situated at the wetted boundary, this boundary is meant to represent the annual high water mark (Hatfield et al., 2012). Note: For the Canadian portion of the Columbia River, river kilometres start at Hugh L. Keenleyside Dam (HLK) Dam in Castlegar and increase moving downstream to the Canada/U.S. border (HLK = 0 km, Canada/U.S. border ~ 57.0 km). River kilometres also increase on the upstream side of HLK Dam, starting at 0 km at the dam and increasing to the headwaters of the Columbia River.